Something Wicked This Way Comes

Chapter 26

Laura stared and stared at the Heartstone, fingers curling and uncurling around her biceps repeatedly, nails digging into her skin so harshly she almost drew blood. It was an anxious habit her dad wished she'd stop. But she just couldn't. Anxiety weighed on her, the not knowing what was happening to her friends was torture.

The night before, she'd woken in a cold sweat, this feeling of absolute dread overcoming her senses like a living nightmare. She'd been left with a lingering sense that something terrible had happened to Carter. That feeling had stuck all night, and well into the morning. Then, it struck again, but this time with more surety and this time it was about all of them.

She'd kept her anxieties to herself. Gods know how the Trollhunters' parents would react to knowing their children were facing even more certain doom. She couldn't put that sort of knowledge on them. Especially not on Barbara. The poor woman was already anxious enough. She looked constantly frazzled, even with plenty to keep her busy.

There'd been an influx of hospital visits. Mostly by mortals who'd been attacked in the night and were left dazed and confused. Only a few people had actually gone missing. Laura disliked all of it.

"Thinking?" Blinkous asked her, stepping up beside her.

Laura gave him a soft smile over her shoulder, before turning her gaze back to the Heartstone. It had been revived last year, with the combined efforts of Douxie, Alina—Joel's wife—, a Roman demigod named Hazel, and herself.

Some people hadn't been thrilled with Hazel crossing into Arcane territory, but Carter and Jim had quickly put the dispute to rest. She'd always wondered how they managed to talk down Jupiter, but they were both powerful young men in their own right, so it probably hadn't been very difficult.

"Just... wishing I knew how they're doing." She answered eventually.

The troll hummed softly. He looked wistful. Sad. "If only," he sighed. "I could speak to my son. If only I could know he was alright."

Laura chewed her lower lip. She wished so badly to see Jamie. He was like a brother to her. He and Aanya and her... they had had only each other for a long time. For most of her life, her closest cousins had been her only connection to her godly side. She missed Jamie so much.

"I only hope Jamie and Olivia aren't at each other's throats," Laura said, though she knew the opposite was probably true.

"Do they dislike each other?" Blinky asked.

Laura took in a deep breath, gazing up the length of the great stone. She could feel its warming power emanating through Arcadia, feeding it strength and life and magic. "They..." she pursed her lips. "A long time ago, back when we were all a little bit closer, Olivia... stumbled into our lives for a short time. I think she and Jamie were about fourteen."

"Yes?" Blinky prodded clearly intrigued.

"They were into each other,"she said. "They dated for a while, almost a year."

"Ah," he nodded slowly. "Was it messy?"

"The break up?" She laughed humorlessly. "Yeah... it was... actually the same reason I grew apart from them. Why my dad and I left New York for good."

"What happened?"

She shook her head. "It's a really long story."

"I am all ears," the troll said.

Laura hesitated. "Well..."

The ground rumbled. They both turned to see Aarrrgghh running towards them, a panic in his eyes.

"Aarrrgghh, what is it!?" Blinky asked.

"Danger!" He said, which was pretty obvious, given his state of panic.